EF English Proficiency Index

The EF English Proficiency Index (EF EPI) is a report which attempts to rank countries by the average level of English skills amongst adults. It is the product of EF Education First, a global language training company, and draws its conclusions from data collected via English tests available for free over the internet. The report was published for the first time in March, 2011 based on the results of over 2 million test takers.^[1] The most recent, fourth edition was released in November, 2014.^[2]

Methodology

The EF EPI fourth edition was calculated using test data from 750,000 test takers in 2013. The test takers were self-selected and no demographic information was collected on them. The tests are used by the company for marketing and placement purposes. 61 countries and 2 territories appear in the fourth edition of the index. In order to be included a country was required to have at least 400 test takers total.^[3]

Findings

The report is composed of a country ranking table, several pages of analysis with graphs correlating other economic and social factors with English proficiency, and analysis of each region or continent. The 2014 report includes a retrospective look at evolution in English proficiency over the period from 2007 and 2013, English proficiency levels by gender, age group, and region within countries, and some English proficiency scores by city. The website displays portions of the report and has in-depth analysis of English skills in many countries and territories.^[4]

Primary conclusions

1. Exports per capita, Gross National Income per capita and Ease of doing business all correlate positively with English proficiency.
2. English proficiency levels are evolving at different rates in different countries around the world, including a few countries with declining English skills.
3. Europe as a whole speaks the best English, the Middle East the worst.
4. The size of the investment in English training does not necessarily correspond to the amount of progress made over time.

2014 Rankings

Map of the results of the 2014 EF English Proficiency Index

Country	2014 Rank	2014 Score	2014 Level	2007-2014 Trend
Denmark	1	69.30	Very High Proficiency	+2.72
Netherlands	2	68.98	Very High Proficiency	1.06
Sweden	3	67.80	Very High Proficiency	1.54
Finland	4	64.39	Very High Proficiency	3.15
Norway	5	64.32	Very High Proficiency	-4.76
Poland	6	64.26	Very High Proficiency	+9.64
Austria	7	63.21	Very High Proficiency	+4.63
Estonia	8	61.39	High Proficiency	-4.16
Belgium	9	61.20	High Proficiency	+3.98
Germany	10	60.88	High Proficiency	+4.25
Slovenia	11	60.59	High Proficiency	+0.41
Malaysia	12	59.72	High Proficiency	+4.19
Singapore	13	59.58	High Proficiency	+0.93
Latvia	14	59.43	High Proficiency	+1.77
Argentina	15	59.02	High Proficiency	+5.53
Romania	16	58.63	High Proficiency
Hungary	17	58.54	High Proficiency	+7.74
Switzerland	18	58.29	High Proficiency	+3.69
Czech Republic	19	57.42	Moderate Proficiency	+6.11
Spain	20	57.18	Moderate Proficiency	+8.17
Portugal	21	56.83	Moderate Proficiency	+3.21
Slovakia	22	55.95	Moderate Proficiency	+5.32
Dominican Republic	23	53.65	Moderate Proficiency	+8.75
South Korea	24	53.62	Moderate Proficiency	-0.57
India	25	53.54	Moderate Proficiency	+6.19
Japan	26	52.88	Moderate Proficiency	-1.29
Italy	27	52.80	Moderate Proficiency	+3.75
Indonesia	28	52.74	Moderate Proficiency	+7.96
France	29	52.68	Moderate Proficiency	-0.47
Taiwan	30	52.56	Moderate Proficiency	+3.63
Hong Kong	31	52.50	Moderate Proficiency	-1.94
United Arab Emirates	32	51.80	Low Proficiency	+1.43
Vietnam	33	51.57	Low Proficiency	+7.25
Peru	34	51.46	Low Proficiency	+6.75
Ecuador	35	51.05	Low Proficiency	+6.51
Russia	36	50.43	Low Proficiency	+4.65
China	37	50.15	Low Proficiency	+2.53
Brazil	38	49.96	Low Proficiency	+2.69
Mexico	39	49.83	Low Proficiency	-1.65
Uruguay	40	49.61	Low Proficiency	-3.81
Chile	41	48.75	Low Proficiency	+4.12
Colombia	42	48.54	Low Proficiency	+5.77
Costa Rica	43	48.52	Low Proficiency	-0.62
Ukraine	44	48.50	Low Proficiency	-4.59
Jordan	45	47.82	Very Low Proficiency	+1.38
Qatar	46	47.81	Very Low Proficiency	-0.98
Turkey	47	47.80	Very Low Proficiency	+10.14
Thailand	48	47.79	Very Low Proficiency	+8.38
Sri Lanka	49	46.37	Very Low Proficiency	-5.10
Venezuela	50	46.11	Very Low Proficiency	+1.69
Guatemala	51	45.77	Very Low Proficiency	-2.02
Panama	52	43.70	Very Low Proficiency	+.08
El Salvador	53	43.45	Very Low Proficiency	-4.19
Kazakhstan	54	42.97	Very Low Proficiency	+11.23
Morocco	55	42.42	Very Low Proficiency	-6.97
Egypt	56	42.12	Very Low Proficiency	-3.79
Iran	57	41.83	Very Low Proficiency	-11.09
Kuwait	58	41.80	Very Low Proficiency	-5.21
Saudi Arabia	59	39.48	Very Low Proficiency	-8.57
Algeria	60	38.50	Very Low Proficiency	-8.62
Cambodia	61	38.25	Very Low Proficiency
Libya	62	38.19	Very Low Proficiency	-4.34
Iraq	63	38.02	Very Low Proficiency	-0.14

Criticism

The EF English Proficiency Index has been criticized for its lack of representative sampling in each country.^[5] The report states that participants in the tests are self-selected and must have access to the internet. This pushes the index towards the realm of an online survey rather than a statistically valid evaluation.

However there are few alternative comparisons available of countries by their English skills, and those that exist are smaller in scale, as is the case with a reported British Council study,^[1] or they have other sampling flaws, as is the case with rankings of countries by standardized English test scores such as the TOEFL.^[6] The European Commission performed a language survey, SurveyLang, which tests a representative sample of 15-year-old European students on their foreign language skills. The first report and data sets were released for 13 European countries in June 2012.^[7]

References

The official webpage of the ranking